Why I’m collecting American Airlines and Delta miles shortly after disowning them

Remember in 2019 when we found out that legacy airlines were transitioning to “dynamic award pricing?” We all considered that to be an objectively bad move. And for most, it was.

Dynamic pricing can be extremely inconvenient. When an airline resorts to dynamic pricing, they’re essentially saying, “we’re going to charge what we want, whenever we want, for whatever routes we want.” They abolish award charts and instead use dubious methods for pricing their award seats.

Example: I used to know that if I collected 25,000 American Airlines miles, I could travel from anywhere in the U.S. to anywhere in the U.S. Now, I’ve got to rifle through all my desired routes and dates and hope I have enough miles for the flight I want.

Yes, legacy airlines’ rewards programs seem to be in a downward spiral. But my unfavorable view of them has recently taken a big turn. I’ll tell you why.

Big legacy airline devaluations = big wins for deal hunters

Dynamic pricing is a deterrent for many — you never quite know how many miles you’ll need for a flight. In response, many of us have stopped collecting some (or all) legacy airline miles. Why bother earning miles with unpredictable value when you can invest in flexible points that won’t lock you into a single airline?

In practice, dynamic award pricing usually works like this. The higher the cash price of a ticket, the more miles you’ll need to redeem for that ticket. It also works in the reverse fashion — if you’re seeing a $50 one-way flight on Delta, you likely won’t be shelling out too many miles (and much less than what Delta would have charged when it had an award chart). Dynamic pricing hurts many of those who liked to use their miles for outsized value when cash prices are high.

In actual fact, these miles have become more desirable than ever to some of us. My attitude toward dynamic pricing has turned 180 degrees recently. After monitoring numerous Delta award sales and intermittently locating stunning American Airlines Economy Web Specials, it’s clear that these once-reliable airlines have become worse for anyone with uncompromising vacation destinations and rigid travel dates. Does any of the following describe you?

• You take the family to grandma’s every year for Thanksgiving
• You fly to your timeshare in Colorado every summer
• Your only vacation time is during the holidays
• Your only interest is skiing in Gstaad and have no interest in the rest of the world

I couldn’t in good conscience recommend American Airlines or Delta miles to someone like that. No, these miles are now for those of us who are flexible with our travel goals. They’re for anyone willing to allow the deals to dictate their travel.

I’ve seen Delta flights from my home airport of Cincinnati to other continents for as little as 9,000 miles each way. I’ve made no plans to visit these specific destinations, but for a rock-bottom price right from my doorstep, I’ll happily use my PTO to cross an ocean.

Award charts are still available

When you fly partner airlines with American Airlines miles or Delta miles, you’ll find the prices do abide by an award chart. Delta doesn’t actually have an award chart for its partners, but their prices are nevertheless fixed. The only problem is that Delta keeps raising the fixed prices. Dynamic pricing really only affects you if you’re flying on actual American or Delta aircraft.

If you want a proper award chart for your domestic flights, you’ve still got plenty of options by collecting flexible points such as:

• Chase Ultimate Rewards
• Amex Membership Rewards
• Citi ThankYou points
• Capital One miles
• Marriott points

These points transfer to a variety of airlines. Here are a few ways you can use them:

• Book coach flights on Delta for 12,500 miles each way by transferring Chase/Amex/Citi points to Flying Blue (the loyalty program of KLM and Air France)
• Book short hops under 600 miles on American Airlines by transferring 16,000 Amex/Citi points to Qantas
• Book round-trip flights up to 4,000 miles on American Airlines by transferring 23,000 Chase/Amex points to Iberia
• Book flights on American Airlines for as little as 7,500 points one-way by transferring Chase/Amex points to British Airways

There are plenty more options for getting domestic award flights for prices similar to what legacy carriers used to charge (or even cheaper). The process isn’t as straightforward, but neither is it difficult. My personal favorite is using Iberia. The handful of times I’ve used it has saved me tens of thousands of points.

Earning American and Delta miles quickly

Remember, earning a credit card welcome bonus is usually the fastest and easiest way to earn a ton of points and miles. Delta is offering abnormally high welcome offers on their best cards:

You can earn American Airlines miles with cards such as:

The information for the Citi AAdvantage Platinum Select, CitiBusiness AAdvantage, Barclays Aviator, and Barclays Aviator Business card has been collected independently by Million Mile Secrets. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

If you’ve got no flexibility with your travel dates and aren’t willing to be flexible with your destination, you’re likely better off earning the welcome bonus from cards like the Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card.

Bottom line

Dynamic pricing has mucked up award flights for a whole lot of travelers. Collecting miles with legacy carriers may not be for you if you’ve got zero flexibility with travel dates and locations. However, if you’re able (and willing) to plan vacations around dynamic pricing, you can get away with murder.

My American Airlines and Delta balances have been dry for a while, but I’m once again collecting American Airlines and Delta miles as fast as I can. I will make no plans with them. I will instead keep them in reserve until an outstanding deal that fits my schedule emerges. I’ve been absolutely gutted to miss some of the deals that have popped up lately. I won’t make that mistake again.

Let me know your thoughts on chasing deals with dynamic pricing. And subscribe to our newsletter for more miles and points posts delivered to your inbox once per day.

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card

Delta SkyMiles® Platinum American Express Card

• Limited Time Offer: Earn 90,000 bonus miles after you spend $3,000 in purchases on your new Card in your first 3 months. Offer expires 4/28/2021.

• Accelerate your path to Medallion Status, with Status Boost®. Plus, in 2021 you can earn even more bonus Medallion® Qualification Miles (MQMs) to help you reach Medallion Status.

• Earn 3X Miles on Delta purchases and purchases made directly with hotels.

• Earn 2X Miles at restaurants worldwide, including takeout and delivery and at U.S. supermarkets.

• Earn 1X Miles on all other eligible purchases.

• Receive a Domestic Main Cabin round-trip companion certificate each year upon renewal of your Card.*Payment of the government imposed taxes and fees of no more than $75 for roundtrip domestic flights (for itineraries with up to four flight segments) is required. Baggage charges and other restrictions apply. See terms and conditions for details.

• Enjoy your first checked bag free on Delta flights.

• Fee Credit for Global Entry or TSA Pre✓®.

• Enjoy an exclusive rate of $39 per person per visit to enter the Delta Sky Club® for you and up to two guests when traveling on a Delta flight.

• No Foreign Transaction Fees.

• $250 Annual Fee.

• Terms Apply.

• See Rates & Fees

Intro APR on purchases

N/A

Regular APR

15.74%-24.74% Variable

Annual Fee

$250

Balance Transfer Fee

N/A

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